Holding a 16-point lead with 46.5 seconds left on the clock, Makati-Super Crunch head coach Beaujing Acot opted to sue for time, which left Manila-Frontrow’s coaching staff puzzled.
After Joseph Sedurifa muffed mid-range jumper for Makati, Manila’s Marvin Hayes was able to score on a breakaway lay-up on the other end. Wanting to inbound the ball with ease, Acot burned a timeout that did not sit well with the Stars’ staff.
“I don’t know with them pero ako, ang habol ko lang doon ay to make sure that we inbound the ball. I don’t care. I really don’t care,” explained Acot, following Makati’s 75-59 Game Two victory over Manila in the 2020 Chooks-to-Go MPBL Lakan North semifinals, Wednesday.
Makati committed a shot clock violation with 3.2 seconds left in the game. Still irked by the opposing team’s gesture, the Manila contingent was already halfway into the dugout before the referees signaled the squad to return to their respective bench.
The two teams still met in the middle of the San Andres Complex to shake each other’s hands.
Manila head coach Tino Pinat later expressed in his post-game interview that he did not appreciate what transpired during the waning seconds of the match.
“Medyo nabastusan lang kami ng kaunti.
“E hindi naman na makakahabol e, okay na sana ‘yun. Pero call nila ‘yan e. Wala tayong magagawa,” Pinat bared.
Despite the incident, Pinat tipped his hat to Acot and the rest of Makati, crediting the Super Crunch-backed squad’s suffocating defensive scheme which shackled Manila’s top guns in Carlo Lastimosa and Chris Bitoon.
Lastimosa shot poorly from the field, draining only two shots in 15 attempts for seven points. On the other hand, Bitoon was limited to just eight points on a 2-of-9 shooting clip.
“They played physical defense and they played well. We can’t knock down our shots, ayun ‘yung storya e,” Pinat said.
“So siguro we have to shoot the ball better in Game Two at saka defending them.”
In the other semis bout, San Juan punched its ticket to the North Finals with a 91-83 victory over Pampanga-ADG Group.
Story by Jonash Dannug
Photos by Thel Suliva
